Rebalancing after pregnancy : part 2 haircare!

If you have read part 1 of this series (thanks for visiting again!) you will know that after baby my skin shrivelled and dried up like old fruit and the very same thing happened to my head! 

When baba was about 3 months all of the gorgeous thick hair I had accumulated during my pregnancy began falling out in giant clumps , I heard this happened but holy crap I could of made 2 extra wigs with what came out in the first week. At the same time I got really bad dry scalp and a really sensitive scalp so the usual head & shoulders suddenly burned my scalp so was way too harsh to use. So began my looooong search for a cure. I tried so many different shampoos over the last few months before I found this combo that's been doing the job for me. 

First up is this fantastically scientific offering from Bioderma node ds+ €13.50

I apologise for this photo my before ones that I always take have disappeared ! 

This is an intense shampoo formulated specifically to eliminate dandruff whilst still being really gentle. 

So how this works is for the first 3 weeks you use this 3 times per week and thereafter 1/2 times per week depending on how you feel you need it. To use you leave it on for 5 minutes before rinsing off , the massive bonus for me with this was how soft it made my hair it was like using a really good conditioning treatment the second you start to rinse hair feels so silky. I used a kerastase treatment in the run up to my wedding and it was really similar to the results there. 

So back to the main purpose! By week 3 my dry flaky can't leave the house it's so bad scalp was finally cleared! Once I switched to the once a week use I started using

  Tresemme luxurious moisture think I got on offer for about €5 

shampoo for the in between washes this has been great as it dosnt bring the dry scalp back which others did plus it's just a great easy use shampoo. 

Next up in the series I'll talk about all the new make up I had to buy too (lol) 

This post contained a mix of pr samples and ones I purchased myself. 

The Quintessential Handbags and Twitter Parties!

Hi guys I am very excited to be back with another collaboration with The Quintessential a wholesale treasure trove of scarves, bags, wash bags, stationary and the list goes on!
I worked with The Quintessential previously when I reviewed one of their beautiful scarves which you can see here. 
Today's post will focus on a review of  the beautiful new season tropical bird shoulder bag from the Collier Campbell collection. I will also be showing you a wash bag from the Eve collection plus a chance to win some prizes from The Quintessential!

I must say I was very impressed when I first saw the tropical shoulder bag in person It is a real eye catching bag. The colors of the bag draw you in without being overpowering, It almost appears like the whole thing has been hand drawn onto the canvas bag. The  pattern is done to such a high standard and the detail is very impressive and like the colors used really draw you in. The first day that I wore this down the street I was asked by two different shop owners where it was from and when I explained they both asked for details to become stockists.

The bag is very well made and feels really sturdy, the addition of a board for the bottom of the bag adds to the solid feel. The fabric is beautiful both outside and in, the bag is fully lined in grey with a slightly different pattern to the outside but the same bird theme. There is great storage for small bits with the addition of some small zipped pockets and also a special string inside for attaching your keys to which is a godsend if your like me and your keys like to play hide and seek with you!

The biggest draw with this bag for me is how pretty and unique the design is, I am currently searching for a changing bag for baby no.1 and am a bit devastated that they dont do any in their range but hopefully it will be something that they expand to in the future.

The wash bag which is from their EVE collection and at w32 and h19 cm its a really great size wash bag perfect for travelling with your essentials or for use as your make up bag. This bag has a pretty floral design in cream, burnt orange and green. As a wash bag by far its most impressive feature is the wire going through the top opening which allows it to remain open while you are using it rather than annoyingly folding in on itself like all of my wash bags tend to do. I also love the washable lining on the interior which if using as a makeup bag is very handy and important addition to clean up spills.
Im very impressed with this and will certainly be adding more of these to my collection.

The Quintessential as you have seen above is a wholesale business and so we want to let all of our lovely local shops know about them so they will become stockists and we can buy all of the loveliness from them :)
In order to become a stockist you should check out you should check out their website http://www.thequintessential.co.uk/

So what was that about winning prizes? Follow myself @clareken86 and @quintessentia_l on twitter and join us next Tuesday May 5th between 7-8 for a twitter party. We will be chatting about the Quintessentials new collections and there will be gorgeous prizes to be won!
To get a head start on being in for those prizes take a look on the website at the collections and tag some of your local shops that you would like to see the Quintessential stocked in, tag some of your friends too so that we can have lots of people taking part in our twitter party. For the twitter party we will be using the #thequintessential, for this time the twitter party prizes will only be open to Ireland and the UK but we would still love for you to take part in the chat.